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Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Raul Lara returns to Long Beach Poly as football coach of Mater Dei
'Welcome home.' A Long Beach Poly assistant football coach offered a warm greeting to Mater Dei football coach Raul Lara on Saturday morning before the start of a summer passing tournament at Poly. Lara, a Poly graduate who won five Southern Section championships in 13 seasons as the Jackrabbits' head coach, was struck by some of the changes he saw, such as an all-weather sports field and bungalows on the old baseball field. The school has begun a $450-million construction project. 'I haven't been here in a while,' Lara said. 'They're doing a lot of reconstruction. It's pretty neat. It will be interesting when it's completed. We didn't have this. We had a dirt track, regular grass field. We used to have a pole by those two trash cans and we had a coach, Don Norford, that every time he yelled, 'Hit the pole,' everybody knew they were in trouble.' Lara won a Southern Section Division 1 title and state championship last season in his first year at Mater Dei, and his team is a heavy favorite to repeat thanks to strong offensive and defensive lines as well as a receiving group that includes receiver Chris Henry Jr., who has commited to Ohio State, and tight end Mark Bowman, who has committed to USC. "That group is special," he said of his receiver group that includes Ohio State commit Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, Georgia commit Gavin Honore and senior Koen Parnell. Still to be decided is who starts at quarterback, with Wisconsin commit Ryan Hopkins competing with Minnesota commit Furian Inferrera. Asked if he could end up playing both, Lara said it was possible. Asked if he was still having fun, Lara said, "It's a different kind of fun. It's more of a CEO fun. I have an awesome staff. All I do is make sure it's functioning. They do a fantastic job." Saturday's competition featured a rarity in that three outstanding tight ends were in the spotlight — Bowman, a USC commit; Andre Nickerson of Inglewood, an SMU commit; Jaden Hernandez of Poly, a Colorado State commit. Defensive backs were pushing and shoving and the tight ends were having none of that. Mayfair has two college-bound defensive backs in Chaz Gilbreath (UC Davis) and Miles Mitchell (Air Force). Mitchell has a 4.5 grade-point average. Poly's Donte Wright is a junior cornerback committed to Georgia with a big upside because he's 6 feet 2 and still growing with track speed. Teams are winding down their summer seven-on-seven passing tournament schedules. Coaches are starting to pass out shoulder pads because official practice begins July 28. Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ohio State football recruiting: Tracking class of 2026 commits for Buckeyes
Ohio State is again putting together one of the nation's highest ranked recruiting classes. Following the Fourth of July weekend, the Buckeyes had received verbal commitments from 21 high school players in the class of 2026. Advertisement The group was No. 6 in 247Sports' composite national team rankings as of July 7 with three-quarters of the commits considered blue-chip recruits rated as four- or five-star prospects. Wide receiver Chris Henry Jr. is the top-rated prospect in the Ohio State 2026 recruiting class. The Buckeyes, who have signed a top-five class in six straight cycles, are bound to add more pieces over the rest summer and fall. With the early signing period approaches in December still five months away, The Dispatch is keeping track of all the 2026 commits. Ohio State football class of 2026 commitments All rankings are from the 247Sports composite rankings and sorted in that order. Chris Henry Jr. Position: Wide receiver High School: Mater Dei, Santa Ana, California Rank: Five-star (No. 15 nationally, No. 3 wide receiver, No. 4 in California) Committed: July 28, 2023 Blaine Bradford Position: Safety High School: Catholic, Baton Rouge, Louisiana Rank: Five-star (No. 26 nationally, No. 3 safety, No. 2 in Louisiana) Committed: March 31, 2025 Cincere Johnson Position: Linebacker High School: Glenville, Cleveland Rank: Four-star (No. 71 nationally, No. 8 edge defender, No. 2 in Ohio) Committed: June 19, 2025 Advertisement Kayden Dixon-Wyatt Position: Wide receiver High School: Mater Dei, Santa Ana, California Rank: Four-star (No. 108 nationally, No. 13 wide receiver, No. 14 in California) Committed: May 4, 2025 Simeon Caldwell Position: Safety/linebacker High school: The Bolles School, Jacksonville, Florida Rank: Four-star (No. 106 nationally, No. 6 linebacker, No. 13 in Florida) Committed: April 3, 2025 Sam Greer Position : Offensive tackle High school : Archbishop Hoban, Akron Rank : Four-star (No. 109 nationally, No. 7 offensive tackle, No. 4 in Ohio) Committed: March 25, 2025 Maxwell Riley Position : Offensive tackle High school : Avon Lake, Avon Lake Rank : Four-star (No. 127 nationally, No. 8 offensive tackle, No. 6 in Ohio) Committed: March 10, 2025 Favour Akih Position : Running back High school : Hayes, Delaware Rank : Four-star (No. 167 nationally, No. 14 running back, No. 8 in Ohio) Committed: June 8, 2025 Jakob Weatherspoon Position : Safety High school : Avon, Avon Rank : Four-star (No. 173 nationally, No. 15 safety, No. 9 in Ohio) Committed: Jan. 2, 2025 Jordan Thomas Position : Cornerback High school : Bergen Catholic, Oradell, New Jersey Rank : Four-star (No. 176 nationally, No. 16 cornerback, No. 2 in New Jersey) Committed: May 12, 2025 Damari Simeon Position : Defensive tackle High school : St. Augustine Prep, Richland, New Jersey Rank : Four-star (No. 201 nationally, No. 26 defensive lineman, No. 3 in New Jersey) Committed: June 27, 2025 Khary Wilder Position : Defensive end High school : Junipero Serra, Gardena Rank : Four-star (No. 241 nationally, No. 23 edge defender, No. 24 in California) Committed: June 10, 2025 Jaeden Ricketts Position : Wide receiver High school : Watkins Memorial, Pataskala Rank : Four-star (No. 269 nationally, No. 45 wide receiver, No. 11 in Ohio) Committed: Nov. 16, 2024 CJ Sanna Position : Linebacker High school : Olentangy, Lewis Center Rank : Four-star (No. 295 nationally, No. 19 linebacker, No. 13 in Ohio) Committed: April 4, 2025 Luke Fahey Position : Quarterback High school : Mission Viejo, Mission Viejo, California Rank : Four-star (No. 357 nationally, No. 25 quarterback, No. 33 in California) Committed: July 3, 2025 Brock Boyd Position : Wide receiver High school : Southlake Carroll, Southlake, Texas Rank : Four-star (No. 381 nationally, No. 58 wide receiver, No. 49 in Texas) Committed: April 15, 2025 Aaron Thomas Position : Offensive tackle High school : Mountain Pointe, Phoenix Rank : Three-star (No. 441 nationally, No. 36 offensive tackle, No. 5 in Arizona) Committed: June 25, 2025 Corbyn Fordham Position : Tight end High school : The Bolles School, Jacksonville, Florida Rank : Three-star (No. 483 nationally, No. 24 tight end, No. 67 in Florida) Committed: Nov. 28, 2024 Cameron Brickle Position : Defensive tackle High school : IMG Academy, Bradenton, Florida Rank : Three-star (No. 541 nationally, No. 62 defensive lineman, No. 77 in Florida) Committed: June 28, 2025 Tucker Smith Position : Offensive lineman High school : Sandra Day O'Connor, Glendale, Arizona Rank : Three-star (No. 667 nationally, No. 57 interior offensive lineman, No. 10 in Arizona) Committed: March 26, 2025 Jamir Perez Position : Defensive tackle High school : Glenville, Cleveland Rank : Three-star (No. 681 nationally, No. 74 defensive lineman, No. 29 in Ohio) Committed: July 4, 2025 Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Email him at jkaufman@ and follow along on Bluesky, Instagram and X for more. Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football class of 2026 commitment list for Buckeyes
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ohio State football 2026 recruiting class commitment tracker
Though changes like Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), and the transfer portal have changed how rosters are put together in college football these days, getting things off on the right foot with a talented recruiting class is still the baseline of building a roster. The Ohio State football program recruits at an elite level, and has for decades, and there are a few national titles to show for all the efforts. The same applies to the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, and others over the last few years. Bring in the groceries to stock the shelves, cook the dinner, then supplement with other key ingredients -- that seems to be the recipe for success. Advertisement We keep tabs on what Ohio State is doing with its football recruiting and keep a recruiting commitment tracker for each of OSU's classes as players commit, all the way through putting pen to paper on National Signing Day and we are doing the same for the 2026 class that is also looking like another elite one in the country. Here's a look at each of Ohio State's commitments with star and recruiting service rankings, measurables, and hometowns. We will continue to keep this tracker updated as the class takes shape, so check back often and get up to speed with where the Buckeyes' efforts go towards continuing the momentum it's had for a long, long time. All recruiting services rankings are taken from the 247Sports Composite Rankings. Chris Henry Jr., Wide Receiver | 5-Star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 5-inches, 205 lbs. Advertisement Hometown/High School: Mater Dei (Santa Ana, CA) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 13 national prospect, No. 3 WR, No. 2 in CA More on Henry's commitment Blaine Bradford, Safety | 5-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 1-inch, 207 lbs. Hometown/High School: Baton Rouge Catholic (Baton Rouge, LA) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 23 national prospect, No. 2 S, No. 2 in LA More on Bradford's commitment Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, Wide Receiver | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 2-inches, 180 lbs. Hometown/High School: Mater Dei (Santa Ana, CA) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 108 national prospect, No. 13 WR, No. 14 in CA Advertisement More on Dixon-Wyatt's commitment Maxwell Riley, Offensive Tackle | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 5-inches, 280 lbs. Hometown/High School: Avon Lake (Avon Lake, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 129 national prospect, No. 8 OT, No. 6 in OH More on Riley's commitment Simeon Caldwell, Safety | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 3-inches, 185 lbs. Hometown/High School: The Bolles School (Jacksonville, FL) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 105 national prospect, No. 6 LB, No. 13 in FL More on Caldwell's commitment Jordan Thomas, Athlete, 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 1-inch, 185 lbs. Advertisement Hometown/High School: Bergen Catholic (Oradell, NJ) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 178 national prospect, No. 16 CB, No. 2 in NJ More on Thomas' commitment Sam Greer, Offensive Tackle, 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 8-inches, 315 lbs. Hometown/High School: Archbishop Hoban (Akron, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 109 national prospect, No. 7 OT, No. 4 in OH More on Greers' commitment Jakob Weatherspoon, Cornerback, 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 5-foot, 10-inches, 172 lbs. Hometown/High School: Avon (Avon, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 172 national prospect, No. 15 S, No. 9 in OH Advertisement More on Weatherspoon's commitment Jaeden Ricketts, Wide Receiver | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 187 lbs. Hometown/High School: Watkins Memorial (Pataskala, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 266 national prospect, No. 44 WR, No. 11 in OH More on Ricketts' commitment Favour Akih, Running Back | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 190 lbs. Hometown/High School: Rutherford B. Hayes (Delaware, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 166 national prospect, No. 14 RB, No. 8 in OH More on Fordham's commitment Corbyn Fordham, Tight End | 3-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 187 lbs. Hometown/High School: The Bolles School (Jacksonville, FL) Advertisement 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 474 national prospect, No. 23 TE, No. 68 in FL More on Fordham's commitment CJ Sanna, Linebacker | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 3-inches, 225 lbs. Hometown/High School: Olentangy (Lewis Center, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 295 national prospect, No. 19 LB, No. 13 in OH More on Sanna's commitment Brock Boyd, Wide Receiver | 4-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 2-inches, 183 lbs. Hometown/High School: Olentangy (Lewis Center, OH) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 377 national prospect, No. 57 WR, No. 50 in TX More on Boyd's commitment Tucker Smith, Offensive Lineman | 3-star Recruiting Bio Measurables: 6-foot, 5-inches, 280 lbs. Advertisement Hometown/High School: Sandra Day O'Connor (Glendale, AZ) 247Sports Composite Ranking: No. 643 national prospect, No. 56 IOL, No. 10 in AZ More on Smith's commitment Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X. This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Ohio State football recruiting commitment tracker for 2026
USA Today
02-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Ohio State five-star recruit shuts down recruitment in favor of Buckeyes
Ohio State five-star recruit shuts down recruitment in favor of Buckeyes Shut it down! Ohio State commit Chris Henry Jr has officially shut down his recruitment and says he is "locked in" with the Buckeyes. In a world where high school athletes change their mind as often as the wind blows, this is huge news for Ryan Day and OSU. Henry who is rated as the No. 2 wide receiver in the nation according to 247Sports composite rankings, had been flirting with other schools such as Oregon, USC, and Miami and had visits planned to each. However, it appears that Henry is serious about being in Columbus as he has reportedly cancelled his official visits to all three. Henry committed to Ohio State early on, giving his verbal pledge in the summer prior to his sophomore year in high school at Cincinnati Withrow. He would play one more season at Withrow before moving to California to attend national power, Mater Dei where he would only play for half the year before suffering a knee injury. He seems to be fully recovered and ready to finish his prep career on a high note. The son of former Cincinnati Bengals receiving star Chris Henry Sr, Junior has all the intangibles with great size, speed, and quickness. He now stands 6-foot-6 and 195 pounds with room to grow. His sister, Siena Hicks is a freshman on Ohio State Women's basketball team as well. The coaching staff can take a bit of a breath knowing that Henry is solidly in the fold and ready to wear Scarlet and Gray.
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
5-star Ohio State commit Chris Henry Jr. visits Oregon
Chris Henry Jr., ESPN's top-ranked 2026 football recruit and No. 7 in the USA TODAY High School Sports composite, has been committed to Ohio State since July of 2023. It looks like the Buckeyes are still going to have to fight to get him on campus next spring. Chris Henry Jr with Dan Lanning 🦆 — Oregon Updates (@oregon__updates) March 15, 2025 Henry, a 6-foot-6 wide receiver from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California, took a visit to Oregon last week. The 5-star recruit's visit was posted to Oregon's social media accounts. It's not the only visit he has scheduled for this spring and summer. He has official visits slated for Miami on May 30, USC on June 6, back to Oregon on June 13 and, yes, to Ohio State on June 20. 5-star WR Chris Henry Jr is in Eugene 🦆 — Oregon Updates (@oregon__updates) March 13, 2025 It was a very early commitment for Henry Jr., coming before his sophomore season of high school. The speedster is still highly coveted, and it seems the recruiting battle might just be heating up. More: Ohio State DC Matt Patricia: 'It's (Ohio) where all the good players come from' This article originally appeared on USA TODAY High School Sports Wire: Chris Henry Jr., 5-star recruit committed to Ohio State, visits Oregon
